Attorney: Trent Pell not guilty in sexual assault case
The Desert Sun 4:58 p.m. PDT August 7, 2014
The attorney representing former Palm Springs Power baseball player Trent Pell, who is accused of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman in Indio, released a statement Thursday defending the athlete and proclaiming his innocence.
Pell, 21, was arrested Wednesday at Larson Justice Center, according to the Indio Police Department. He has pleaded not guilty to three counts of felony rape and one count of sexual battery with intent to rape/or mayhem, according to jail records.
The charges stem from an incident on June 16 at a home in the 81-800 block of Sandy Court in Indio, according to Riverside County Superior Court documents.
“Mr. Pell committed no crime. He traveled back to Indio from his home in Michigan to defend himself against all accusations,” Gary Jay Kaufman, an attorney representing Pell, said in an email Thursday. “He is not just presumed to be innocent under our laws, he is in fact innocent of all charges. I fully intend to vigorously defend him against the pending charges and clear his good name.”
According to court documents, several witnesses said they entered a room and saw a man, they positively identified as Pell, assaulting a woman, who was unconscious because she had drank too much alcohol.
Pell left his wallet, identification and cell phone at the scene, the documents added.
He attends Oakland University in Michigan and investigators said he went there shortly after the incident.
Pell was released from the Palm Springs Power earlier this year, at the beginning of the season “for disciplinary reasons,” according to team president Andrew Starke.
In its 11-year existence, the Power has never had outside allegations of “inappropriate behavior” leveled against any players or coaches, according to Starke.
Pell was released from the Riverside County Jail in Indio Thursday after posting $200,000 bail, according to jail records.